I am not only pleased but I am extremely honored to announce that I took first place in the Forever Natural division of the 2007 INBA Natural Universe competition held in Venice California on November 3rd. As always the INBA Natural Universe drew athletes from all over the world from New Zealand to Sweden. As usual I was overwhelmed with the quality of athletes that represented their individual countries.

For me winning a world title in the Forever Natural division is the most meaningful recognition I can receive for the past thirty-two years of hard work and dedication that I have devoted to Natural bodybuilding. The Forever Natural division is open to all athletes regardless of age who have passed the required polygraph test that is administered to determine if indeed you have experimented at any time in your life with illegal performance enhancing drugs or illegal diuretics.

The INBA requires all other divisions such as the Master’s, Open and Pro’s to be drug free for the past three to five years. In these divisions we are all tested via urinalysis and blood. The testing is conducted by WADA (The World Anti Doping Agency). The very same organization that test’s all the Olympic athletes for the International Olympic Committee. The INBA’s commitment to drug free sports is what attracted me to the organization initially and why it continues to gain my respect and support with each competition I’m involved with.

As the 2007 Forever Natural champion I am making it a goal to spread the word and the endless benefits that natural bodybuilding has to offer. From teens to seniors we can all enjoy a healthy and vibrant life by letting Natural bodybuilding lead the way.

I wanted to take this opportunity to give everyone an update on my results in the Team USA /International Forever Natural championships. I am very proud to announce that I had a very successful weekend by winning both Masters divisions that I entered.

International Forever Natural
I am equally excited by both achievements. First, the International Forever Natural is something that I consider to be one of my shining moments in my competitive career. As a Forever Natural competitor you are required to undergo a polygraph test. This test is created to confirm to the best of its ability that you have never taken any type of performance enhancing drugs in your lifetime. The banned substances are not just limited to anabolic steroids but any type of prescription or non prescription diuretics as well. The Forever Natural competitions give me an opportunity to compete with others who have been drug free their entire life.  With my belief in Natural Bodybuilding and the fact that I have never experimented at all with any type of banned substances makes this International title very meaningful to me.

Team USA
I am very honored to have won the Masters Division in the Team USA Championships. As the   number one representative from the United States in the Masters division I will be competing against representatives from forty other countries in Thessaloniki Greece for the Natural Olympia title November 25, 2007. I am also extremely honored to have been chosen to be the men’s team Captain and look forward to working with my fellow team mates as we bring home the Gold.

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I’m hitting it hard training for my next big competition, "the INBA Team USA", to be held in Los Angeles California on September, 22, 2007. The top five qualifiers in each division are chosen to represent the United States in Thessaloniki Greece against 35 other countries for the most sought after title in Natural Sports. The Natural Olympia!

Check Back and See How I Did!

Was it steroids that lead to the horrific death of famous wrestler Chris Benoit and his family? That is a mystery that only qualified individuals can determine. On one side you have individuals pointing fingers yelling roid rage. On the other side you have people defending him and even going so far to question if it was Chris Benoit who committed this terrifying act. The only thing we know for a fact is that Chris Benoit, his wife and innocent child are dead.

I have had a number of individuals writing in and asking what my opinion is and asking me to jump on the roid rage band wagon. As a natural athlete it would seem the obvious route that I would take but I have never been the type to cast stones if I don’t know for certain. If steroids are to blame and I’m not saying they are you cannot blame the drugs but the individual that abused them and even more the people that encourage that abuse.

Before you point fingers at a Chris Benoit or any professional athlete for using or abusing anabolic steroids and performance enhancing drugs ask yourself a simple question. Have you ever been guilty of encouraging that abuse? I think if we are all honest we will all answer a resounding yes. Let’s face it we all live in a society where being bigger, faster, stronger, is better. But when does it stop being better and start being dangerous?

As sports enthusiasts, we all want to see records broken and new standards continually set. Sport promoters have known this from the very start and when the stakes are set as high as they are today one athlete’s health and well being does not have much impact on the direction and future of the sport.

The dark side of steroid abuse is a topic that would shock even the most seasoned large inner city homicide investigator. The madness of this abuse has got to stop and the purity and respect of all sports needs to be returned to its rightful state. But will we be satisfied with idolizing anything less than a superhuman? A superhuman whose strength, speed, agility and endurance are all based on the effects of anabolic steroids.

When I was growing up in the 70’s and early 80’s I was no different than any other young athlete. My particular sport was bodybuilding and I wanted to achieve the success and fame that I observed on the covers of the muscle mags I believed in and respected so much. Through the innocence of youth there also comes a certain degree of naivete and I had my share.

Once my eyes were opened to what it was going to take to excel as a professional bodybuilder I put my bodybuilding aspiration aside for almost two decades. I instead concentrated on helping others reach realistic fitness goals and shared with them the endless benefits of being healthy and active.

As a bodybuilder who has been hard at work constructing and detailing my physique for three decades I have been standing on a soap box trying to encourage young bodybuilders to stay away from the so called “dark side” of the sport.

Now with the opportunity I have been given to showcase my physique in the Natural Bodybuilding arena my efforts are now being taken seriously and people are starting to listen.

The tragedy of Chris Benoit and his family, steroid induced or not brings to light the seriousness of the situation. Sports and physical activity whatever form they might take for you are ways to elevate your fitness level and enable you to enjoy your life to the fullest. In the microwave society in which we live, quick results are often times not only desired but unfortunately casually expected.

As a natural bodybuilder I have learned to savor the healthy journey and never look at it as a destination. So whatever your desired goal might be slow down and enjoy the journey. So do we blame the Chris Benoit’s of the world, the promoters or society itself for the deadly grip steroids have placed on our athletes?

I say before you point a single finger make a statement against drugs by getting your life on track and become as healthy and as fit as you can be by leading a clean and active lifestyle. Simply say no to drugs by setting the best example you can and maybe just maybe not so many individuals will be tempted by the life threatening effects that are waiting for all those who dare to tempt fate and rush the results that only time can achieve.

Over the last thirty years bodybuilding has given me an invaluable blue print to follow. At this juncture in my life what I enjoy most is the opportunity to pass along that blueprint to young body builders just starting out.

In our microwave society bodybuilding like so many other sports has taken a very dangerous detour. Because of the fast pace lives we all live the demands for instant results create the need for young bodybuilders to seek out dangerous life threating shortcuts. Once the bodybuilding bug bites I can tell you there is no turning back. That’s when I feel I can make the biggest impact. My main objective is to encourage young bodybuilders to take the natural approach. This approach demonstrates the value of patience and how to enjoy the journey and all the physical and emotional benefits it has to offer.

Bodybuilding started to gain promenace in the 1950’s with athletes like Jack Lalanne and Steve Reeves leading the way. They were true natural bodybuilders who are shinning examples of what living the natural lifestyle can do for ones overall health and well being. These same life long benefits are available to anyone young or old who has the courage to simply say NO TO DRUGS!

Bodybuilding is all about elevating your health not destroying it and all those around you through the abuse of anabolic steroids.I am most proud of the fact that I have never experimented with any type of performance enhancing drugs. I do admit to being incredibly tempted while in my teens. That’s why I feel I can relate to the young bodybuilder who finds themselves with a passion for sports and a need to elevate there performance and appearance by taking illegal shortcuts. I can help steer the young athlete away from the destructive lifestyle of drugs and cheating that never has a positive outcome. The lifestyle that I show is possible through hard work and patience will enhance their lives well into there adult years.

I invite young bodybuilders and all young athletes to take advantage of the informative articles and helpful videos I offer on my site. More and more are going to posted as the weeks and months pass by. Most importantly I encourage parents to get involved and become as educated about natural bodybuilding as they can. My consultation services will help young bodybuilders and their parents learn more about the endless benefits natural bodybuilding offers and the dangers of the darker side of the sport as well. I will be able to develop proper age appropriate training programs and proper eating regimens. These programs will lay the foundation and show first hand how beneficial natural bodybuilding is and how much you can achieve with patience and the right approach. Everyone possesses the ability to reach their ultimate goal whatever it is. Let natural bodybuilding show you the way.
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The Bod Pod

Body Composition Analysis

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Some thirty years ago I entered a health food store for the very first time. I can remember the overwhelming aroma of vitamin B that permeated the small shop. The purpose I had for stopping in at the age of thirteen was to purchase a muscle mag for the first time. I can still see the picture of Frank Zane looking down at me like it was yesterday. Compared to the other body builders featured in the magazine such as Arnold, Mike Mentzer and Franco in my mind Zane epitomized what body building was all about. He resembled the classical Greek sculpture. He was perfect in size and proportion and best of all was pleasing to the eyes of the general public. Right then and there I made it my personal goal to create that look for myself.

Well here I am over thirty years later writing an article about spending a afternoon with the one individual that has inspired and motivated me every step of the way. The day started with a beautiful drive down to San Diego California now home to Frank and Christine Zane. I was taking advantage of the consultation service Frank Zane has become famous for over the years now known as the Zane experience. He had offered to critique my physique and most importantly work on my posing routine and stage presence.

I have to say after being involved in fitness and body building for over thirty years I was extremely curious to see if he could teach me anything new. I have to say this old dog has been humbled. After taking pictures of me performing my mandatory poses he came back with some award winning changes to my routine.  I say award winning because I tried out his suggestions the next day at the INBA Iron Gladiator. This was my first competition of the year and I’m pleased to say that I took first in the Masters and won the overall Masters as well. I truly believe
his advise changed my stage presence from looking like a sometimes confident amateur to a extremely confident professional. His critique of my physique was honest and straight forward. He first praised me for being in great condition and then said I need to place a little more meat on my back. He then proceeded to show me some very effective twists to some of the same exercises that I have been doing for years. I have to admit I wish I was performing these exercises in this manner years ago. The first workout that I did when I returned home my back was sore for two days. What a great feeling!!

I experienced Zane first hand and now know why he is considered to be the most educated body builder of our time. More than that, I got to know the person behind all that knowledge. He is an incredibly entertaining and captivating individual. I could have sat there for hours listening to his stories about the Golden Age of body building which he was so much a part of. If you are serious about improving your physique or becoming more proficient on stage the Zane experience would be an invaluable investment. It’s a day that this old iron warrior will remember for the rest of his life. THANKS FRANK!